New and interesting ways to take Android and turn it on its head are part of the reason that many people prefer the platform over the more uniform, tired down iOS or Windows Phone. It's the reason that XDA-Developers exists, and it's the reason that very forum often plays host to some of the best Android apps and tweaks around. With that in mind, it's perhaps no surprise that the tweak we're about to tell you about is the brainchild of an XDA-Developers forum member.
One of the joys of dealing with an Android device is that, even without root, the level of customization available to users is simply invaluable. Most of those little annoyances can be dealt with by means of a simple app or mod, and if you've always taken exception to the navigation bar on your Android device, a little app by the name of Ultimate Dynamic Navbar may have your back. While there are perhaps dozens of apps out there allowing you to resize and reposition the navigation bar for your infinite convenience, Ultimate Dynamic Navbar trumps them all with a rather simple idea; it houses the ability to be hidden or shown at will.
Gravity Screen Off for Android allows you to automatically turn your device’s display on or off based on its proximity. More details and the APK download link can be found right after the break.
Those of you who are acquainted with Android 4.2 Jelly Bean are likely aware of the keyboard that it ships with. The stock keyboard is an intelligent offering to come out of the Android lab from Mountain View, and makes typing a whole lot easier on Google-branded Nexus devices, or any device that ships with stock Android. And starting today, you can now download that very same keyboard for any Android phone or tablet absolutely free of cost. More details and APK download link can be found right after the jump.
Vine, Twitter's video-sharing app only hitherto available on iOS, has finally made its way to the Google Play Store, so if you're an Android user and have been waiting patiently for Vine to manifest itself, you can now go ahead and download it. We have all of the details, as well as that all-important download link, coming right up after the break.
We know what you're thinking; why do different app marketplaces for each mobile platform need a plethora of third-party alarm apps, when the native implementation does the job perfectly well? We have to agree to a certain extent and have always found that the simplistic alarm feature on our iPhone or Galaxy S III does a perfectly good job of getting us up in the morning. With that said, there's always room for a little innovation regardless of the app genre. And it looks like AlarMe for Android app combines necessary alarm features with a very clever weather based twist.
As everyone probably knows at this point, each time an Android app is installed it has to tell the user what it will want access to. Be it location, SMS or general internet access, it's all laid bare for us to see. It means that we can ask questions when an app asks for far too many permissions for what it's supposed to do, for example. The problem is, not everyone pays attention.
Widgets make the world a better place, and luckily for those on Android, the Play Store is awash with them. Depending on which apps and features of a device you use most commonly, tailoring one or a number of home screens to your exact requirements is very easy thanks to the multitude of accompanying widgets available.
There are lots of benefits to rooting your Android device, many of which we've touched on at length in previous articles. The best thing about it, in my opinion, is the fact that you can get right into the guts of the Android software, and although Google's mobile OS is quite a bit more flexible than, say, iOS, rooting can still be a very advantageous and fruitful pursuit. Without meaning to continue in the theme of morbidity, if rooting were the practice of dissection, the eXperience tool could perhaps be seen as the noob's meat cleaver, for it allows you to really explore the depths of what your Android device can do, and with a broad repertoire of features, it's a must-have for any fledgling rooter.
Owning a tablet laced with all the latest and greatest software and hardware is great and all, but unless you've made provisions for keeping the battery life afloat, your fancy smartphone or tablet can often become a very expensive paperweight. Luckily, there is no shortage of apps out there seeking to aid the practice of good battery management, and one such utility by the name of Extend battery life: AC Socket has just been released over at the Google Play Store.
